Tuesday, April 30, 2013

It's that time of year again when the weather gets warmer and I start to realize that summer is right around the corner and that I need to get out of hibernation mode and eat healthy! I absolutely love this Portobello Mushroom Burger Recipe, complete with lots of garlic, a bit of mayo and smoked Gouda. What more could one ask for from something that is a very healthy dinner? I did make a few tweaks of my own to the recipe: I doubled the marinade and used powdered garlic instead of fresh in the mayo, but other than that, it's a fantastic recipe and I love it every time I make it.

Now for my Mexican Brownie saga. I've always been the person who told people that if you're going to eat a brownie, eat a real brownie and only have one. Then I realized that my brownie recipe has something like 250 calories per brownie! I did some research and was able to get the calorie count down to around 160 per brownie by using avocado in place of the butter and black beans to up the protein (hence the name Mexican Brownies); however, after two attempts at tweaking the recipe, I still feel like they're not quite finished. It's a little like an artist not wanting to reveal his masterpiece until it is complete.

They came out a little cake-y for my liking, but they also came out like bricks. As in I could hurl these at an intruder and probably stop him dead in his tracks. I'll continue to play with the measurements and promise I will post the recipe when it no longer tastes like diet food, or has a texture like diet food. For now, enjoy the portobello mushroom burger recipe!

Sunday, April 28, 2013

What a glorious Sunday! It finally feels like spring. And what better way to celebrate warm sunshine and bright blue skies than to think about cooking local foods that are coming into season? My mom has been a fan of Amy Cotler of The Locavore Way for several years now. My mom has been going to farmers markets and growing her own food since before it was trendy, and loved Amy Cotler's book. Yesterday, my mom and I attended a cooking class at Amy's 19th century farmhouse in West Stockbridge, making beautifully simple recipes using produce that is in season now.

Sunday, April 21, 2013

Happy Sunday! It has been one hellish week and I for one am actually glad to be starting a new week, even though that includes work. Lock-down on Friday brought an onslaught of emotions: fear, frustration, and pride all at the same time. Luckily I wasn't alone in my apartment. Every couple of hours my roommate Jill and I would force ourselves to turn off the news and find something new to do. Louis CK stand-up on HBO helped to lighten the mood a bit. I'm just glad it's all over, although I don't think I will ever forget the feeling of being afraid to go outside or open a window.

Thursday, April 18, 2013

I have food issues. Sometimes when I hear people talk about food, be it doughnuts, ice-cream, pizza, what have you, I suddenly get a craving like a crazy pregnant lady. If it's something like ice-cream where I would have to go out to get it, sometimes I can coax the craving to go away. But when it's something I can easily make with ingredients I already have in my kitchen, that's when we have a problem. That's when you can find my in my kitchen making cookies at 9 p.m. Today, this happened to me with waffles. I was watching an episode of West Wing on Netflix (I'm obsessed), someone mentioned waffles, and the craving hit me like a truck. And then it dawned on me: I have everything I need to make them! And so, I had waffles for dinner.

Thursday, April 11, 2013

Confession time: I listen to music when I cook or bake. More like blast music. And more like terrible top 40 songs, not really music. My soundtrack for this recipe? "Can't Hold Us" by Mackelmore and Ray Lewis and "Heart Attack" by Demi Lovato.

I've been inexplicably obsessed with both of these songs lately. I just want you to picture a freckled white girl in a cardigan, dancing around her kitchen, rapping or belting out pop songs into her mixing spoon. Either way it's a scary thought even to me. I shudder to think what would happen if anyone ever saw me.

Sunday, April 7, 2013

There are few things in this world that I love more than breakfast. Especially breakfasts of the egg and potato variety. But when that morning comes and you have to get ready for work, who has time to make a full breakfast? Unless you're an early bird (and I am not) you probably either skip breakfast or throw some milk into a bowl with some instant oatmeal and stick it in the microwave when you get to work, which is what I've been doing for the last couple of months. Oatmeal is great breakfast, don't get me wrong, but sometimes I need a little variety in my life, and the sunshine-y golden yolks of eggs make me very happy when they're smiling back at me. I'm weird, I know. But hey, it's the simple things in life, right?